Interesting Canadian: Madam Mary Broderick

A pillar in the Canadian Community here in Singapore, the ever gracious Madam Mary Broderick was kind enough to answer a few questions in this issue’s Interesting Canadian.

1. What were your thoughts when you first heard you were coming to Singapore, and what were some of the unexpected surprises once you arrived?

We first learned that we were coming to Singapore in the dead of a very bad Ottawa winter, so my first thought was that I would be free from shovelling snow for a few years!  Actually, we were thrilled to be assigned here as it had been at the top of our list of desired postings. We had read about the many wonderful things to do and see in Singapore and the region and knew that it would be the ideal place for our four girls and me to be introduced to Asia.  When we arrived, the thing that struck me first was how green and lush Singapore is, and the ride in from the airport past Marina Bay and the CBD was quite an eye-opener. Also, both David and I were very touched by how welcoming everybody - Canadian, Singaporean, and ex-pat alike - was.  I think one of the biggest surprises for us, though, was how busy we would be with various events most nights.

2. Do you find the challenges of raising 4 girls in Singapore any different to Canada? 

Well, given the ages of our four girls, I'd say the biggest challenge we face is keeping them away from the Orchard Road shopping district!  They love to find things that are a little different from what might be available in Ottawa and consequently are always trying to negotiate a raise in their allowance.  It was a little difficult in the beginning for me to feel comfortable with the girls taking taxis and public transit by themselves since I was used to driving them everywhere in Ottawa.  Other than that, the teenage challenges are much the same as anywhere - homework, curfew, computer time limits, etc.

3. So what's a typical day like in the life of Canada's First Lady of Singapore?

I’d have to say that there really is no such thing as a “typical” day for me.  Although I usually start my day by trying to get teenagers out the door in time for school or weekend activities (which is pretty typical of most families) after that, every day tends to be different. I try to get to as many of the Canadian Association daytime activities as I can (the coffee mornings, “Out and About”, etc.) as I really enjoy the informal camaraderie of being with other Canadians and discovering interesting places in Singapore that are “off the beaten track”.  I also attend a number of diplomatic spouses’ groups that meet on a regular basis (for example, a French-speaking group and a book club) as these are opportunities to get together with very interesting women (mostly) from around the world and to share about our cultures.  I take part in ongoing charity work on behalf of the Tabitha Foundation with some diplomatic friends and hope to be able to help out more in the coming year.  If we have an event at the Official Residence, I’m often involved with the menu planning and organizing and, as we tend to be out at events many nights each week, an ongoing challenge is to make sure that the homework situation is under control.

4. Besides being featured as the MLT's most interesting Canadian, what's been your most memorable or exciting moment during your stay here?

It's hard to pick just one moment.  When we first arrived, I had the honour of having tea with Mrs. Nathan while David presented his credentials to the President.  She was incredibly gracious and easy to talk to and made me feel immediately at ease. Last November, during the APEC meetings, I was very excited to have the opportunity to meet Prime Minister and Mrs. Harper and although both their schedules were incredibly full, I was able to have a really nice chat with Mrs. Harper during their stay.  Also during an APEC dinner event, I was introduced to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, which was a real treat.

5. Have you managed to do much regional travel and do you have any favourite spots?

We try to travel as much as we can, but it is sometimes hard to get away because of David's work commitments.  We also have received strict instructions from our children who are living in Canada that many places are "off limits" without them!  That having been said, we have managed long weekend getaways to a number of really interesting places such as Brunei, Yogyakarta, Bangkok, KL, and Ho Chi Minh City and somewhat longer trips to Beijing and Japan.  Everywhere we have visited has been fantastic in its own way so it's hard to say what has been our favourite spot, and the longer we are here the longer our list of potential travel destinations becomes!  

 6. What do you miss most about being away from Canada, and how often do you manage to get back home?

Other than family, of course, I would have to say that the things I miss most about Canada are the seasons and the changing weather throughout the year.  Although I think I've adjusted somewhat to Singapore's heat and I'm assured that I will look years younger when I return to Canada because of the humidity, I do miss the cool, crisp days of the Fall and the beautiful colours of the Gatineau Hills every October.  I'm planning my first trip back to Canada at the end of August following the Youth Olympic Games to help our third daughter, Jocelyn, settle into her freshman year at Queen's.  We've been very lucky that many of our family and friends have been able to come to Singapore to visit us so that's made being away from Canada a little easier.

7. And finally, is there any truth to the rumour that David wears ermine robes around the house, and insists everyone calls him "Your Excellency"?

No comment!

Can Carbon Offsetting Improve your Reputation? Part 1 of 2

 By Tejas Ewing, Carbon Markets Coordinator, the New Economics Foundation, London


VOLUNTARY CARBON OFFSETTING — the process of purchasing an emissions reduction generated elsewhere, to deal with an organisation’s own internal emissions is perhaps the most controversial topic in today’s active carbon marketplace.  Having been hailed as the only valid market solution to climate change and criticised as being akin to ‘selling indulgences in the catholic church’, or referred to as the ‘morning after pill of the environmental movement’.  Many organisations have begun to offset some of their emissions in the hope that this will help to improve their reputation as a ‘green’ organisation and improve the marketability of certain products.

For example, Land Rover recently sold its new line of off-road vehicles with a carbon offset included, so that all of the emissions for the lifetime of the car were effectively ‘neutralised’ by the investment by Land Rover in renewable energy projects in China. It was claimed that these projects effectively reduced emissions in China in line with the projected emissions caused by use of the vehicle. This was seen as somewhat of a marketing coup for the company because it could then brand itself as the first ‘carbon neutral’ vehicle. The implied message was that a Prius might have lower emissions, but you could instead buy a Land Rover and simply pay for the emissions to be reduced elsewhere, more efficiently. The idea perhaps was to have your cake and eat it too.

However, such offset initiatives can also backfire. The band Coldplay wanted to make one of their live concert tours ‘carbon neutral’ by investing in offset projects worldwide to ‘neutralise’ their emissions from flying and putting on a carbon intensive tour. Unfortunately, they chose to invest in some projects that involved planting mango trees in India. These projects were poorly designed and did not provide adequate support to the villagers in India that were asked to maintain the trees. As a result many of the trees died, the local people were unhappy, and Coldplay looked bad.

What this highlights, from a marketing and branding perspective, is that if your company aims to pursue carbon offsetting, or carbon neutrality, you must do it carefully and think hard about your decisions and how to deal with your carbon emissions in a holistic way.

A well constructed offset project can add value to consumer goods and enhance your reputation, while a poorly designed offset initiative just looks as if you are trying to fool the public.


So what can you do?
Within this complex mix of opinions, however, one thing remains constant. There is an expectation that organisations must have a valid plan of action to deal with their own carbon footprints. A recent review by the Carbon Disclosure Project showed that 75% of the 500 largest companies in the world are now measuring their carbon footprint, and taking action to actively reduce it. Consumers are
beginning to expect this, and it doesn’t pay to be left behind on planning to reduce the emissions of your organisation in order to
improve your brand value and reputation with consumers.

To many, Carbon Offsetting is one valid strand of action for an emissions plan, as it allows institutions to create more robust tactics to deal with their carbon footprints. However, carbon offsetting is only one part of a complex and valid planning system which must include real and internal emissions reductions. Carbon offsetting can never be the only pillar of your environmental strategy!

Any organisation thinking of purchasing carbon offsets must first put significantly more effort into reducing direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions, before any offsetting strategy is implemented. It is clear that offsetting without carbon reduction is nothing more than an exercise in guilt reduction, false publicity and futility. Therefore, do not buy offsets until you have a structured and published plan to reduce your organisation’s emissions.

What is also clear, though, is that when it comes to unavoidable emissions, such as flights that must be taken, there must be a mechanism for proactively providing solutions, because for any organisation there will be some unavoidable and irreducible emissions.
Carbon Offsetting has attempted to provide solutions for these unavoidable emissions, but like any new industry there is much confusion and controversy.

Even if one is reducing emissions before undertaking offsetting, there are further pitfalls. There are significant risks associated with any offsetting strategy, and they primarily involve the decision over what offsets to purchase. Offsets purchased from the wrong provider may never be delivered, or the projects might fail, resulting in wasted money and significant reputational risks to the purchaser. The key paradigm for judging quality is known as VALIDS.


Keep an eye open for next month’s MLT where the criteria for VALIDS will be revealed and the article will be concluded.

Getting Out of the Daily Grind

By Dr Ansgar Cheng, Prosthodontist, Specialist Dental Group

Grinding can occur at any time. Night time teeth grinding usually occurs when we are falling asleep, dreaming, or when we are waking up. It is also common for children to grind their teeth at night. This is mostly self-limiting and the vast majority of children out-grow this phase. Day time stress is also another reason for grinding. When people are under stress, they generally do not sleep well.

Consequences 

Grinding of teeth over the long term may lead to accelerated wear on the teeth causing a reduction in the height of the lower face, speech problems, incapacity in chewing, loss of support to the lips and generally, an aged-looking face. It can also lead to jaw, oral and facial pain, and head & neck muscle pain.

Many times, patients who come to our clinic due to jaw joint problems turn out to be teeth grinders at night. Since moving to Singapore from Canada six years ago, I have been seeing more patients having symptoms associated with night time grinding, compared with my 11 years working in Canada. This is likely due to different lifestyles and higher level of stress from work in Singapore.

Solutions

• Keep teeth wear in check through regular dental visits.
• Manage other clinical symptoms when they arise. 
• Use a dental splint; and
• Try yoga and other forms of relaxation training.

In some cases, it may end up that the recommendation is to do nothing… Diagnosis is the key in all cases.

Specialist Dental Group is a corporate sponsor of the Canadian Association of Singapore (CAS). CAS members enjoy a special rate for dental services. For details, send an enquiry via  www.specialistdentalgroup.com  or call 6733 7883.

Canada Day Singapore Style

By Sandra Johnson

This year marked my 12th Canada Day in Singapore, and Canada’s 143rd birthday. Over the years I’ve spent several Canada Days with friends from the Canadian Association of Singapore. This year, His Excellency David Sevigny and his lovely wife, Madam Mary Broderick, hosted a Canada Day BBQ for members and friends of the CAS. A great time was had by all. There was a Canada Day cake, hotdogs and hamburgers galore, fancy cupcakes, cookies, savory snacks, and Nanaimo bars aplenty. Old friends caught up over bottles of Dead Frog beer and new friendships were forged. We sang “Oh Canada” with proud voices after listening to David Sevigny’s inspiring speech. Canada Day venues and events may change, but the festivities are always enjoyable and make me feel like a true Canadian even though I am thousands of miles away from home. 

  

Happy Birthday Canada! You still look great at 143. 

   

More photos can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/canadiansofsingapore/CanadaDay2010#